[Spruce]

The windows are bifocal in Bournemouth because it’s full of old people like most South Coastal towns lol,Tradman is the man to watch for advise but don’t start off with a liquidator squeegee.

Ah yeah. Deffo God's waiting room haha

Yeah been watching a few of Trad Man's vids, but sort of switch off when he starts going on about advanced kit and why xyz is best - blatantly been paid to push (or pull!) Moerman haha

Look at his early vids as not as much promotion of kit!!!
To be honest if you are switching off when he's talking kit then maybe window cleaning isn't for you  Window cleaning is quite a repetitive job, so you might need a higher boredom threshold 

Nicely said

Window cleaning isn't the most mentally stimulating of jobs. It's lovely to be out in the open air and sunshine in summer, but the winter months can be challenging, especially for those who have got used to working in a warm office.

[colin bird]

This is what I did 14 years ago and not having any knowledge about window cleaning ,I sat in front of my PC and researched everything about how to start a window cleaning business and how to build a profitable round,the way forward for me was to canvass,canvass,drop leaflets,advertise in local parish mag,all gained me customers but by far canvassing worked best for me.
I understand you have limited funds but please hear me out,when I was doing my research before starting I soon  realised that the the window cleaners that were busy and were earning good money were all wfd,so I would suggest that you throw that trad gear in the bin !if your serious about building a business borrow some money for van and set up and the get canvassing.
Some guys will disagree with what I'm saying,but it worked for me .
Good luck

[Smudger]

I see nothing wrong with starting out trad - easy way to get the feel for it before going into a nice easy cruise with wfp - it appears he is having no issues getting customers which is a big part of the job but you also need to invest in the right equipment, which at the moment he has not - Im not saying spun£ 20k on an ionics system - just get recognised equipment like Unger for trad - gardeners, x-line or streamline for water fed pole - a trolley is good - but if poss get a cheap van and install a system - your learning from the ground up.

my only concern with the op is already he's making assumptions about videos and equipment instead of investigating and soaking up the knowledge on these videos

Has an old hand - they are boring and predictable as nigels posts - but for a noob - watch, learn and practice

Darran

[Danno90]

The windows are bifocal in Bournemouth because it’s full of old people like most South Coastal towns lol,Tradman is the man to watch for advise but don’t start off with a liquidator squeegee.

Ah yeah. Deffo God's waiting room haha

Yeah been watching a few of Trad Man's vids, but sort of switch off when he starts going on about advanced kit and why xyz is best - blatantly been paid to push (or pull!) Moerman haha

Look at his early vids as not as much promotion of kit!!!
To be honest if you are switching off when he's talking kit then maybe window cleaning isn't for you  Window cleaning is quite a repetitive job, so you might need a higher boredom threshold 

Nicely said

Window cleaning isn't the most mentally stimulating of jobs. It's lovely to be out in the open air and sunshine in summer, but the winter months can be challenging, especially for those who have got used to working in a warm office.

See, I don't mind being out in the cold, wet/damp etc at all. 8 - 10 hour long fishing trips at all times of year kinda hardens you up, (even if you don't catch much!).

I figure there's enough variety in window cleaning for me - even if once my round's established it is the same houses every 5 - 8 weeks, it's not the same 4 walls you're staring at from the same desk every day of the week.

I guess when it comes to practical things I prefer to learn through doing more than just watching/listening. Would rather see for myself the benefits/drawbacks of a certain piece of kit rather than just be told.

[Danno90]

I see nothing wrong with starting out trad - easy way to get the feel for it before going into a nice easy cruise with wfp - it appears he is having no issues getting customers which is a big part of the job but you also need to invest in the right equipment, which at the moment he has not - Im not saying spun£ 20k on an ionics system - just get recognised equipment like Unger for trad - gardeners, x-line or streamline for water fed pole - a trolley is good - but if poss get a cheap van and install a system - your learning from the ground up.

my only concern with the op is already he's making assumptions about videos and equipment instead of investigating and soaking up the knowledge on these videos

Has an old hand - they are boring and predictable as nigels posts - but for a noob - watch, learn and practice

Darran

Sorry, I think I may have worded it all a bit "not quite right".

It's not the "this is a squeegee" talk I lose interest in. It's the "this is the xyz squeegee which is better than the previous abc squeegee" - as a newbie I've nothing to compare it to myself until I've done the whole trial and error thing.

[Slacky]

Ettore squeegees mate. They're what you want.

[robbo333]

I'm in Bournemouth you cheeky whatnits!

It's not all Bifocal shop windows...what about the ramps, plenty of ramps 

If you want a hand learning to trad, look me up on Google: Peter Robinson Window Cleaning.

[NWH]

Yeah ramps and anything soft to eat like ice cream and donuts 🍩 🤣 tbh as far as trad gear goes Ungers range is the best at the moment it suits all from beginners to the experienced.
Moreman stuff is good for pole work as you don’t need to detail the top and side edges and they only work at all with copious amounts of detergent.

[Smudger]

That’s called experience - and your being given an opportunity to avoid mistakes by going straight to better equipment from the experience of others

Darran

[NWH]

I would avoid the Moreman squeegees I remember watching old skool window cleaner on YouTube trying to use one when he first started,painful to watch.

[Ched]

It's not the "this is a squeegee" talk I lose interest in. It's the "this is the xyz squeegee which is better than the previous abc squeegee" - as a newbie I've nothing to compare it to myself until I've done the whole trial and error thing.

The problem is trial and error costs £££. It is really difficult to judge kit when you are in experienced even when it's in your hands. You don't know if it's a technique you need to learn or a poor tool. One of the other problems is it's not the actual cost of the tool it's the p&p that starts mounting up when you just want the odd tool.
While you will learn by trial and error get a good overview of kit from as many sources as possible then make your own informed judgement. 
Personally I started wfp about 12 months ago - customers for last 9 months. However I did buy moerman kit to learn trad. There will be many people who say don't start with moerman but in my opinion why learn with 1 tool then switch to another where the technique is a little different to what you have just learned? I do very very little trad, only the very odd interior window where a custy asks specifically or 1 where 2 old sash windows leak like a sieve and are awaiting replacements.

[NWH]

A Moreman tool is not a beginners tool even in the most capable hands it can be a nightmare I would go straight to an Unger S plus a 14”-10”-6” with a 14” washer and learn how to squeegee properly.
The technique you need for a Moreman is totally different you need to use very shallow arcs or it will look like someone’s gone over the glass with a sharp knife when it dries from turn marks.
Cut the rubber blade to the edges so it only just goes over the ends that’ll give you something to start working with. 

[NWH]

Starting trad isn’t a bad thing all window cleaners imo should be efficient with traditional tools,this business is full of people that haven’t a clue with a squeegee and you are limiting yourself to what you can clean sometimes it’s a pleasure to do a bit of traditional work as long as it doesn’t interfere with earnings over the pole.

[Danno90]

Day 2 update with a second attempt (after some much needed further research! and sleep coz micro-analysing what I was doing was getting me nowhere in the end).

Have tried the same windows again as yesterday (still not managed the whole house, just picked the easiest windows while I practise initially).

Have trimmed the rubber, played around with squeegee-to-glass angle, grip on the handle, and pressure.

Getting slightly better results than yesterday, but tbh definitely need to spend a bit more £ as there's only so much cheap gear can do.

So thank you all very much for your input and advise. Given me lots to think about moving forwards

[Danno90]

I'm in Bournemouth you cheeky whatnits!

It's not all Bifocal shop windows...what about the ramps, plenty of ramps 

If you want a hand learning to trad, look me up on Google: Peter Robinson Window Cleaning.

Will definitely keep this in mind, thanks

And yeah, ramps... and hand rails!

[NWH]

You need to keep the squeegee moving as soon as it stops you’ll leave a line,that first turn at the top of the window is the part I always go up and half back over again that’s usually the section of the window you’ll leave a turn mark.

[Slacky]

Day 2 update with a second attempt (after some much needed further research! and sleep coz micro-analysing what I was doing was getting me nowhere in the end).

Have tried the same windows again as yesterday (still not managed the whole house, just picked the easiest windows while I practise initially).

Have trimmed the rubber, played around with squeegee-to-glass angle, grip on the handle, and pressure.

Getting slightly better results than yesterday, but tbh definitely need to spend a bit more £ as there's only so much cheap gear can do.

So thank you all very much for your input and advise. Given me lots to think about moving forwards

Wait til you have to squeegee off a ladder, left handed as well as right handed 😀😀

[NWH]

The best tutorial I’ve ever seen on YouTube was by the bloke that owns D&A components he sells the bronze wool,honestly well worth a look he explains cleaning a window traditionally in the best way possible very similar to how I work with a blade.
You will see no need for Moreman squeegees to achieve great results in the same time,I don’t care what anyone says you need to detail to some degree even if it’s a very small amount.

[Spruce]

Then there is the choice between hard and soft rubber!

[Danno90]

So will be getting the Unger Ergo-Tec S Channel 10 inch complete squeegee (with whatever rubber comes in it from WCW) and also the Unger Power rubber and RazrBlade red - should be ok for now?